


Cravings

by mothicalcreatures (laelreenia)



Category: MacGyver (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Unresolved Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-05
Updated: 2017-02-05
Packaged: 2018-09-22 06:36:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 982
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9589130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/laelreenia/pseuds/mothicalcreatures
Summary: Soulmate AU except instead of a red string or a tattoo, you share food cravings.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by [this post](http://gilbent.tumblr.com/post/156378056044/gilbent-soulmate-au-except-instead-of-a-red) on tumblr.

The first time Jack notices something out of the ordinary in regards to food cravings is when he gets the undeniable urge to eat ice. The intensity is almost painful and it lasts a full week before it eventually fades out. It doesn’t stay gone, however, in fact, it’s back pretty quickly and it stays back for some time.

This leads Jack to two conclusions:

  1. He has a soulmate.
  2. They are for some inexplicable reason, craving _ice_  of all things, and the craving is either really consistent for them, or they aren’t in a position to get ice. 



 

Mac was in the latter position. Getting ice when you’re constantly moving through a country with a lot of desert, just, was not a thing that happened. His squad never really settled in one place, they kept moving, because there were always different places that needed the bomb disposal unit. Mac would settle for hard candies when he could get them, and while they took the edge of, it just wasn’t the same. There was crunch but it wasn’t _cold_.

 

The ice cravings continue on and off for some time, and eventually Jack has to admit, okay, there _is_  something to be said for eating ice. It’s the most specific craving he gets that he knows is his soulmate and not him, nothing else really pings anything new for Jack. 

 

Mac doesn’t really notice when he starts getting cravings he’s not used to. He figures he’s just tired of military food and wanting foods he’d never really given much thought to prior to leaving the States. Like beef jerky, that’s a big one. When his unit is stationary for a little bit, he shoots Bozer an email asking if he could send a care package with non-perishable snack foods, beef jerky on the list. Bozer doesn’t question it and ships it with the quickest shipping he can to make sure it reaches Mac before Mac’s unit starts moving again.

 

When Jack meets Mac he in no way suspects that this kid is his soulmate. Mac has long since stopped complaining about the lack of ice traveling with the military brings. The only food related things Jack really knows about Mac is that he’s always got some sort of hard candy somewhere on his person, anything from Smarties to Jawbreakers, and he shares his beef jerky with Jack when his friend sends him care packages.

 

Mac’s never really been focused on finding his soulmate, never really thought too hard about it. When his weird want for beef jerky starts to peter out once he meets Jack (and subsequently starts sharing said beef jerky with Jack), he just thinks he’s getting tired of eating it. That happens with food. It’s not unusual for Mac to be really into eating one thing all the time for a while, getting tired of it, and then never eating it again. When the last of the beef jerky runs out, however, mostly being consumed by Jack at this point, the craving comes back. It’s much easier to ignore this time, however.

 

It’s not until they’re back in the States, their first night back in the States actually, that Jack figures it out.

They’re going out to eat, celebrating the fact that they’re home, and they’re staying home. When the waitress comes to get their drink orders Mac asks if he can just get a glass of ice. No water, just ice. 

When Jack asks about it, Mac shrugs and says he likes the sensation. Jack give a noncommittal ‘huh’ and leans back in his chair. He watches Mac eat the ice throughout dinner.

Mac notices Jack watching him but doesn’t say anything. 

 

It takes _a lot_  longer for Mac to notice. In fact it’s ‘post Nikki fiasco’ a lot longer. Mac is a month into his recovery from getting shot and Bozer is being a hair too hovery. So he texts Jack saying that he needs to get out of the house. Jack’s solution to this is a road trip.

Not a long one or a fancy one, Jack assures Mac. It’s mostly for the driving than anything else, Jack says, driving’s a good way to relax.

Mac just nods and tilts his seat back adjusting so that he’s comfortable leaning back with his arm in a sling. He doesn’t intend to fall asleep, but he does.

Jack gently nudges Mac awake several hours later when they’ve stopped at a roadside diner somewhere in Arizona. Mac leaves his sling in the car, Thornton wants him to wear it a little longer, just  in case, but Mac really doesn’t like eating with only one hand. Mac finds himself craving… not oatmeal but something similar, as they walk into the diner. It’s not that he doesn’t like oatmeal, it’s just not at the top of his favorite sensory foods. He’ll eat it if it’s the oatmeal with the dinosaur eggs though. 

Mac finally realizes what it is he’s craving when he sits down and looks at the menu. He’d completely forgotten that grits were a thing. His mouth starts to feel weird just _thinking_  about eating it and he grimaces. Grits are an even worse sensory weird than oatmeal, why on earth would he be craving grits, of all things?

Everything clicks into place when they order, more specifically when _Jack_  orders. A weird feeling settles into the pit of Mac’s stomach and he doesn’t feel so hungry anymore. 

Jack asks Mac if he’s okay, and Mac has the sudden worry that if _he’s_  lost his appetite, maybe it was having an effect on Jack too. 

“It’s nothing,” Mac says. “Just…” he gestures vaguely, “everything I guess.”

“Yeah, that’s fair,” Jack says. “You gonna order?”

Oh right, the waitress was still standing there. Oops. Mac orders what he’d been looking at though he’s not sure he’s going to eat much of it.

**Author's Note:**

> Edit: A comment made me realize that not everyone has had the pleasure of experiencing Dinosaur Egg Oatmeal. [So here's a convenient link, so you can check it out.](http://www.quakeroats.com/products/hot-cereals/instant-oatmeal/dinosaur-eggs.aspx)


End file.
